1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to an orthopedic support. More particularly, the invention relates to abduction pillows. Specifically, the invention relates to abduction pillows used to immobilize legs after arthroplasty or endoprosthetic hemiarthroplasty surgery to accelerate the recovery and healing process.
2. Background Information
Post-operative management of patients having undergone total hip arthroplasty or endoprosthetic hemiarthroplasty usually includes measures to prevent early dislocation of the hip. Adduction generally increases the risk of dislocation of the hip and as such, pillows are used to immobilize the legs after surgery to facilitate and accelerate the healing process. Despite variations in base material, usually some form of foam rubber and associated covering, most pillows have basically the same design and makeup. This design includes a triangular shape such that the apex fits between the thighs near the patient's groin, and the broader base fits between the ankles, thereby maintaining the desired abduction. Retention straps attached to the pillow are then used to secure it in place by encircling the legs above and below each knee.
While the known abduction pillows are presumably sufficient for the purpose for which they are intended, several problems have been associated with their use. Specifically, decubitus ulcers, or bedsores, can result from the extended recumbent position of the patient thereby causing permanent stretch injuries to soft tissue. More particularly, the design of the current abduction pillows utilizes retention straps above and below the knees as set forth hereinabove. Because the pillow itself is generally fairly rigid, it acts as a splint to maintain the knee in full extension. With the legs cinched against the pillow, a situation can arise in which the buttocks proximally and the heel distally are the only firm points of contact between the leg and the bed. The heel then supports a large portion of the weight of the leg, distributing it over a very small surface area.
This condition is aggravated by the fact that in the immediate post-operative state, the patient is usually heavily sedated, and often is given high doses of narcotic analgesics. As a result, the normal protective sensations, the body telling you when damage will occur, can be markedly impaired by theses medications. The situation is even more dramatic for a patient in whom spinal anaesthesia has been used, as that they may have no protective sensation in the lower extremities of their body for hours. To overcome the above problems the patient is turned many times through the day to assure that no particular point of the patient's body is subject to localized pressures for an extended period of time. However, the constant turning requires a significant number of pillows and supports to assure that the patient, when turned, remains turned.
A second problem generally associated with the prior art abduction pillows relates to the use of straps to cinch the leg against the pillow. In operation, the straps must be sufficiently tight to assure that the leg will not move with respect to the abduction pillow positioned between the patient's leg. However, if the straps are set too tight, neurovascular complications can result within the leg. Such complications can be avoided by designing an abduction pillow wherein the use of straps to cinch the leg against the abduction pillow is unnecessary.
Moreover, current abduction pillows are bulky and difficult to store. Also, a few days after a total hip arthroplasty surgery, the patient is removed from the bed several times a day in an attempt to get the patient onto his feet and moving about once again. The current abduction pillow makes this difficult, as the pillow must be completely removed from the patient, taken from in between the patient's legs, and stored while the patient attempts to walk.
Lastly, current abduction pillows inevitably result in difficulties with elimination and perennial care. These arise from the fact that conventional abduction pillows fit quite high between the thighs, such that in order to use a bedpan or a urinal, it is necessary to remove the retention straps and either completely remove the pillow or to slide it distally a significant distance. The same holds true for the performance of routine perennial care.